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Mackerel fisheries. (Photo: Stock File)

Iceland's announcement of mackerel quota welcomed

EUROPEAN UNION
Thursday, April 24, 2014, 23:30 (GMT + 9)

"Iceland's announcement of its unilateral mackerel quota is a positive step. It conforms to the share figure it had previously claimed in the Coastal State mackerel negotiations, namely, 11.9 per cent of 1,240,000 tonnes," said EU spokesperson for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs, Helene Banner, in a statment.

And she added: "The EU has said from the outset that the door is open for Iceland to join the arrangement, and we could now be very close to reaching a deal which includes all four Coastal States: the European Union, the Faroe Islands, Norway and Iceland. We therefore urge Iceland to join the other three Parties at the negotiating table at the earliest opportunity so that we can work out the terms of a full four-Party Coastal State arrangement for mackerel."

Iceland's announcement of its 2014 mackerel quota set at 147,574 tonnes follows a five-year agreement reached on 12 March in London by three Coastal States - EU, Faroe Islands and Norway-. This arrangement established a number of important principles, including a commitment to sustainable fisheries, a sharing between the Parties, and a commitment to establish a new long-term management plan in 2014 following ICES advice.

The European Commission regrets that Iceland was unable to come on board at that time but highlights that the arrangement made room for it to join at a later stage.

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